MUDDYCREEKTWP — Looking for a round of golf?

Forget the clubs. No need to worry about bringing balls or tees, either.

Just pack a bunch of Frisbees.

That's what 115 people from 16 states and Canada did over the weekend at Moraine State Park as they competed in the 2006 Pittsburgh Flying Disc Open.

The 18-hole course consisted of a few open fairways and some fairways no wider than a trail in the woods. In fact, some fairways were trails in the woods.

Par for the 8,244-feet course was 66. The longest hole was No. 15 at 852 feet — no real problem if you're a professional.

"The top pros can throw a disc 500 to 550 feet,"said Chris Sprague of Springfield, Ore. The average pro can throw one 400 to 450."

Discs used in competition must meet weight and density specifications. Players on the course carried frisbee bags on their backs. Each bag consisted of 15 to 20 discs.

Each player also carries a mini-frisbee or two, which serve as markers for their shots, much like golfers use ball markers.

Each hole has out of bounds areas roped off. Sail your disc out of bounds from the tee box or lose it entirely, you take a penalty stroke and start over. Sail your disc out of bounds on any other shot, you throw from a designated drop zone.

The "hole"is a basket on a pole, with chains above it serving as a backboard.

"The disc has to wind up in the basket to finish the hole,"said Matt Hall of Houston, Texas. "If it hits the pole and deflects away, it's like rimming out in golf ... I've done that a few times."

Hall, 17, will be a senior in high school this fall. He's staying with friends in St. Louis, Mo., and is spending part of the summer on tour.

"There's a course right behind my father's house,"Hall said. "I noticed some people playing. It looked like fun. I've been hooked ever since."

"Once you start playing this, it's hard to stop,"Sprague admitted. "I got started like most people did. I like to throw a frisbee."

Sprague, 31, had worked in sales for five years, but quit his job to tour full-time with the Professional Flying Disc Association.

He is currently on a tour taking him through 13 states, traveling in his RVfrom tournament to tournament.

"I've made $7,000 to $8,000 playing in 15 tournaments over the past three months,"Sprague said. "That's more than I made at work. Traveling in an RV and staying on the road, though, a lot of that money is chewed up with expenses."

There are plenty of courses to choose from. Flying disc courses exist in all 50 states and in 21 countries. Sprague competed in a world event in Japan in 2004.

"One of my roommates is over there right now and he's tied for first place,"he said.

The United States Disc Golf Championship is held each October in Rock Hill, S.C. Players receive points for how well they do in tournaments within their region during the year. Build up enough points, you receive a bid to play in the national event.

Tony Ellis of Washington D.C. has been a pro since 1994, but maintains a career in printing sales. He primarily plays tournaments up and down the East Coast.

"It's a great sport,"Ellis said. "It's inexpensive and I've got friends all across the country now."

Steve Heckathorne of Hilliard, Ohio, only plays tournaments within six hours of his home — and the Pittsburgh event is his 22nd of the year.

"They're all over the place,"he said of the tournaments. "There's usually three or four to choose from in a given week."

While the Pittsburgh Flying Disc Open is a major tour stop and had 56 pros and 59 amateurs playing, most local tournaments have 30 to 70 players.

Scorecards do not include a design of each hole. Pro players generally arrive at a tour site two days ahead of time to check out and/or practice on the course.

"Sometimes you just can't do that,"Sprague said. "So you warm up by just playing catch with another player."

Most players can toss the disc with either hand, sidearm or backhand. Some shots can be high and arched. Other holes require low line drives.

"You've got to be versatile and sometimes creative,"Hall said.

Locally, the Pittsburgh Flying Disc Society consists of five leagues and seven courses:Getty Heights, IUPCollege Lodge, Knob Hill Community Park in Marshall Township, Monroeville, Moraine, Phillips Park and Schenley Park.

Leagues include the Pittsburgh Challenge Ladder (all courses), Sunday Devotional League at Knob Hill, Knob Hill Doubles, Moraine Monthly and Schenley Weekly.